Have you ever wondered what you should look for before moving into a new house? Normally we considered the environment of the locality, structure/ cleanliness of the building, security & maintenance measures, amenities, neighbors in and around the premises, proximity to workplace, markets, school and places of daily errands etc. and often had to settle down by sacrificing on a point or two out of above. Evidently , as purchasing a house is a lifetime decision, all aspects of this dream-home is now possible if you plan to live in "INTELLIGENT BUILDINGS". As such buildings are planned on a holistic concept following an integrated and futuristic approach to protect and enhance the environment, it is more responsive to user needs, maximizing on the efficiency of its occupants by allowing effective management of resources within minimum costs.

Considering extensive press coverage regarding high cost of energy and the need to preserve nature, intelligent buildings are increasingly becoming a necessity today, be it commercial or residential. With widespread adoption of digital technology, more energy-efficient automation systems alongwith intelligent communications and Building Management Systems (BMS), day-by-day all activities, whether personal, business services or commercial are increasingly taking place from our homes itself. In such a changing situation its high time we give our attention to building intelligent homes which is Eco-friendly and adds to ones comfort.

Abiding by the definition " Intelligent building combines innovation, technology with skillful management, to maximize return on investment " we can divide the high technology operations into the following four basic categories, where the ultimate objective is to integrate these into one single system ;

Energy efficiency

Life safety systems

Telecommunications systems

Workplace automation

ENERGY EFFICIENCY : Attention must be given to make maximum use of solar energy, a renewable source of supply which is environment friendly. Further with extensive use of computerized systems, energy consumption can be reduced to bare minimum and savings upto 40% in electricity bills can be achieved through efficient management systems for heating, lighting, closed circuit TV, alarm systems etc. by use of programmed switches, duty cycling, setpoint reset and optimal energy sourcing devices.

LIFE SAFETY SYSTEMS : Besides having security booth at the entrance access to building be restricted, by use of password and smart cards. Fire alarm and security systems to use high-end technology for maximizing efficiency at minimum recurring cost. Other life safety factors involved in intelligent buildings will be reduced manpower dependence, closed circuit television, card access control at each critical operations area, intruder alarm, smoke detector, UPS and emergency control of doors, elevators and HVAC systems.

TELECOMMUNICATIONS SYSTEMS : Efficient communications is an integral part of intelligent building system whereby intelligence among the occupants is shared at a minimal cost. Some of the telecom features which can be adopted are; PBX telephone system, cablevision, videotext and electronic mail.

WORKPLACE AUTOMATION : With widespread use of digital technologies there has been a profound change in the way we communicate, shop, manage our finances, conduct business and entertainment in our daily lives. As these activities are increasingly taking place at home, so home building management assumes greater importance where various automation systems from home theaters, door phones, intercoms, security systems, PC & internet networks, surveillance cameras, driveway sensors, thermostats etc. needs to be integrated to make our homes smarter in future. In this regard systems such as word processing, centralized data processing, information services and computer aided design need to be incorporated into intelligent building design.

Apart from the technological features for reduction of operating/ maintenance costs, advanced building design is adopted to withstand natural calamities, like flood, hurricane, fire and earthquake. Green landscaping of open space is also undertaken for conservation of the environment. Clearly building such smart homes in future that will improve quality of life and reduce stress levels will be worth purchasing even if it costs more than a traditional house.